Shifting
by theonlygingerasian
Summary: This is about this girl Marie and she meets this guy Lucas and falls in love w/ him. They go through a series of events and it turns out, Lucas and his family are shapeshifters!
1. Rude Introductions

The Shifting

By Alyssa Poulin

Preface

I never really gave much thought to the supernatural. I've heard all the myths of dragons, goblins, fairies and so on. There are countless websites and books about the mysteries, but I haven't gotten to reading them. But as an average girl, with an average brain, in an average school, I never realized the true danger of those creatures out there. As I fell from my crib that day as a one-and-a-half-year-old, clumsiness has become a habit. That's me. Marie-Katherine-Jennifer-Anne. My last name? Much too confusing. My mom couldn't decide on a name, so she named me all of them. I live in Ontario, Canada, but moved down to a busy, tourist attraction of a town, called Orlando, Florida with my mom. I miss the cold, and my dad, but enjoy the heat and nobodiness Until I suddenly took a different path and got a complex , new way of life in its place.

CHAPTER 1 Rude Introductions

As I walked to school wit my iPod blaring, I noticed a group walking and chatting on the other side of the street who didn't normally came this way. It was mid-summer, and they wore heavy jeans and hoodies. I knew this group very well, they were known as the 'gangsters' and they were in a neighbourhood no one 'cool' went through. A new boy was with them, he caught my eye. His smile infectious and shocking jet black hair stood out like a sore thumb, obviously dyed. He was listening to another member of the group, when he looked away and rolled his perfect brown eyes. He glanced up and he met my gaze, he looked troubled. I felt the surprise and shock cross my face. The boy slowed his graceful walk which came to the point where the group noticed his pause and his face turned back towards the pile of teens and smiled apologetically. Something I did not expect to happen, well, happened. He started his way towards me. ME. I could feel the burn of his confused eyes on the top of my hung, embarrassed head.

"Hello." he nodded politely. I peeked up through my dark chocolate brown hair, cheeks showing the slightest amount of shyness. I looked long enough to see his dazzling smile. I now understood why it was infectious. His perfectness overwhelmed me and I could swear my legs were thinking of giving out on me.

He looked puzzled. He took a cautious step towards me, my heart wanting to jump out of my fragile chest.

"I'm new here, my name is Lucas. Please don't laugh." he pleaded. I couldn't say anything. My brain wasn't working. His posture stiffened, like he was about to take a blow from a rampaging bull.

"Hi?" I managed to squeak. Lucas seemed to relax a bit. He seemed calm, but troubled.

"I noticed you were walking alone, so I felt the need to…accompany you." Very gentleman-like. "Do you want to, um, walk to school? With me? Wait, sorry, I'm being rude. What's your name?"

"Um, sure, and Marie." Uh-oh, my babbling monopolized the greeting, making my cheeks bright red. "Well, actually, my name's longer but my nickname is just Marie. My mom couldn't decide on a name, so she just picked 'em all! Sometimes, when I'm nervous, I tend to babble a little, so just ignore that. Did you ever find out the real reason the chicken crossed the road? I didn't." Oh, gee, my brain IS NOT WORKING! I finally gained control again, just in time. "I think I'll stop talking now, 'bye."

I hurried to get away from the embarrassing conversation and turned back towards my mother's house. Leaving him dumbfounded and speechless. Suddenly, he was in front of me.

"Wait. You should go to school. Why are you going the opposite way?" his deep eyes were wide with concern.

Sooner than I knew, we walking on the pavement of the school parking lot. He took me to my locker then strode off to his. All I could do was stare like an idiot.

*********

He found me in homeroom, and we sat across the aisle. At the back, where the teacher didn't pay much attention to. We talked three quarters of the class, but somewhere near the end he'd coaxed me in to sitting with the cool group at lunch.

We got there before the others and sat down at the round table, the one with knife slices on the edges.

"So this is it, huh?" I asked, feeling the ridges and dents the group had cut. Clearly, he wasn't paying attention, because he was staring at the most popular girl in school's table, them laughing hysterically. Though it always seemed to be oblivious to their noise. I waved my hands frantically in the way of his stare, when her icy glare reached the table. I froze, her eyes locking mine in direct line with Lucas's too. One of her friends noticed the glare and cocked her head. The owner of the icy glare didn't seem to notice. Her friend tapped her and she finally lost my stare.

"Who's THAT?" he asked bug-eyed. I looked at him disapprovingly and he was lost. His daydreams were constantly taking all of his focus away from you. I sighed and counted backwards.

"3...2...1...cue Lucas." I smirked. He blinked at me and was intently waiting. "That's Senna. The most obnoxious, self-centered girl- actually, we can't say 'girl' you _should_ say monster." I informed him. He whipped his head around, surprised at my insult and at that moment, Senna made her way over to our table. She flashed me a cold glare then smiled warmly to Lucas. He was totally in to the 'go out with the new kid then break his heart scheme' though he had no idea that was what's happening.

"Hey new kid. Want to have lunch with us? We're so much cooler than your loser friend Too-many-names." she put her hands on her hips and shifted her weight to her right. I so badly wanted to stick my tongue out at her and pull Lucas away. Well I at least got the last one done.

I tugged at his shirt and hauled him out of the cafeteria doors. He was still in his strange smile-and-dream-of-Senna trance. He was grinning and rolling his head from side to side. I decided I had enough of this so I shook him violently and he blinked several times before finally showing human-ness.

"What? I'm dreaming of Senna…" he sighed happily. I rolled my eyes and he folded his arms impatiently.

"Well DON'T!" I hissed. The bell rang and Lucas grumbled:

"Yeah, no lunch for me… gotta interrupt my daydreams." he slunk towards History class.

***

Marie, what's with Senna? She looks pissed. I wonder if she's upset about Lucas… Carly

My new friend Carly had shoved a note under my arms and I got a paper cut. I pouted after that. I glanced over and found her extremely close to my face, biting her lip curiously, yet impatient. I began to write unhappily.

Carls, I don't want to talk about it, so don't go asking for trouble. Lucas is starting to fall for the scheme though.

I handed her back the note quietly and she had her lower lip in full pout. Eyebrows furrowed, she unfolded the note and her brows suddenly shot up. She stared at me in disbelief. Her pencil scribbled furiously on the page and folded the paper up quickly and shoved it in to my waiting hands. She was now looking towards the head of the class.

I hadn't noticed when Mr. Lawres asked a question.

"The Boston tea party?" Carly guessed.

One suspicious eyebrow of our history teacher's shot up. I rolled my eyes under my eyelids. I was sure that wasn't the answer anyways, seeing as we were studying First Nations.

"So you think the First Nations had the Boston Tea Party to resolve their tribe problems?"

Carly looked at him sheepishly and he returned to his lecture. Her note was written messily and I could barely make out the words. I thought it said:

WHAT?? I can't believe Lucas is dumb enough to even believe the first flirt! Tell me more at your house. Yes, that's a demand.

I held the note in my hands, bewildered. Out of nowhere, the note disappeared. I looked up to find Mr. Lawers holding the paper filled with notes.

***

I took my place in the detention room, for the first time in my life. My face was stained with the tears that overflowed. In front of me was a boy with his head down on the old rickety desk. His hood was up, and it looked familiar. Too familiar…

I heard a sigh and the boy straightened out. He turned around and immediately, I knew it was none other than…

"Hey Marie. What're you in for?"


	2. Broken Hearts

CHAPTER 2 Broken Hearts

"Lucas?!" My mouth popped open. He blinked in confusion, not knowing why _I _was surprised.

"What? I was caught passing notes with _the heart wrenching monster.__"_He emphasized the four words that shocked me. My eyebrows mashed together and I thought about that. He cocked his head and his lips were moving, but I couldn't hear the sound that came out of them.

_That__'__s impossible! I thought he was _in love, _not amazingly enraged at his _one true love.

Lucas waved his hand in front of my face. I refocused and folded my hands on top, now listening. He huffed, then began again.

"I was wondering if I could come over after detention." he looked down as if he were embarrassed to ask this simple question. I dissected the question and found that it would actually be very embarrassing to ask.

"Yeah, uh, sure. But can't we talk now? We're the only ones left in here. I suggested.

"No, we should just go to your house after." He insisted. I played with my schedule, wondering if Carly would mind.

***

"So, what brought _this _on?" my too-odd-for-a-normal-teenager's-mother asked curiously with a note-pad in hand.

"Mo-om!"I whined. "I don't have time for your crazy interviews!"

I stormed away, outside where Lucas was waiting.

"I just need a few answers!" she called after me.

"Hey. Let's go for a walk. I need to talk to you." he began his way down towards the forest. He turned around and held out his hand. I shrugged and took it. We went on the trail and walked until I was sure the path was about to end. I paid no attention to where we were going, I was too busy thinking of the possibilities of his decision.

"So, what do you want to talk to me about, and where the heck are we going?" We weren't on the trail anymore. We were in the bush, on a path that looked like it was walked on before.

"Don't worry, I've been here before."

"Been where?"

"You'll see."

We walked in silence and still held hands. It was slightly uncomfortable. My hand began to get clammy with sweat; _jeez! His hand was boiling!_ I didn't want to hurt his feelings, so I kept my hand there.

We reached a shaded clearing, with a nice park bench in the far side, the beach a little ways down the feild. He dropped my hand and I shrugged and waited to see where he'd go; beach or bench. He chose the bench. I followed him towards the shaded park bench. Lucas sat down and patted the space beside him. I sat down hesitantly. We'd walked for a good hour, so I was sore. I leaned back on the park bench and we sat there, watching the shoreline rise and fall. His voice was soft, but it still startled me.

"You should have told me about her little trick, instead of letting me fall for it." he accused.

"I _did._ You just refused to listen hence the daydreaming!" I was now feeling insulted. How could he accuse me when I'd already told him about the scheme? It's just not right. I told him about the trick, right?

He sighed and I gave up.

"Can you tell me what exactly is the point of this little walk? I'm getting impatient." I turned my whole torso in his direction and raised an eyebrow. (Wow, there's a lot of eyebrow raising…) Lucas cleared his throat and took my hand again.

"I'm not a human being. None of my family members are, either." his eyes bore in to mine and he looked for any signs of fright. I didn't get it. He continued.

"I think I'll have to show you." Lucas left the park bench and got down on his hands and knees. I cocked my head and started to get up. He shook his head and motioned for me to sit back down. I sat down obediently.

A rumbling erupted from Lucas's chest, and suddenly, fur grew on his face, his arms and legs. A tail shot out from behind him and spots showed on top of the fur. His nose became a muzzle and his ears came out on top of his head, while his human ears disappeared. He was turning into an animal. A cheetah.

I gasped and clung to the bench arms for support.

Lucas-or what used to be Lucas- sat down and looked at me with a pained expression. _Please don__'__t run, I__'__m faster than you anyways. I__'__m a shape-shifter, Marie. _he thought. Wait a minute…_thought?!_

"L-Lucas? What's going on? Why can you do that? Please don't-"

_Will you shut up already? _

"How can I hear you?"

_Well, I__'__ll tell you in a sec. Okay, here we go again. My parents and my insanely huge family are shape-shifters too. I__'__m a cheetah at heart, I guess you could say. You can hear me because in a few minutes, you__'__ll be able to communicate properly with me. __All my other siblings are paired up already, except my sister Rhonda. She can__'__t find the right guy yet. Anyways, when a shifter finds the _right person,_ we can begin shifting. I found you. I only liked Senna because everyone has to find one crush before you find your _'match'. _Unbelievably, I met you _before_ the crush/infatuation. What I__'__m getting at is that__…__ I um, love you. _

Lucas curled his tail around his paws, clearly embarrassed. My mouth dropped and made a pop. I immediately closed it and sat there. It could've been hours, or minutes. We just sat there; Lucas looking out to the ocean, me figuring out this situation. Eventually, I found my voice.

"So you're saying that we're kind of like _soul mates?_" I squeaked. Lucas turned his head towards me and got up. He stretched and made his way over to me.

_Kind of. _He snickered. _I don__'__t think there would be an alternate soul mate in the world. I think it__'__s a once in a life-time chance. _He scratched at the ground. My heart just left me, broken. An instant later, it felt like another replaced it. Strong and powerful.

_Can you get down too? I__'__d like to see what your heart reveals. _He smiled. Or I thought he smiled…

"Do I have to?" I whined. Lucas barked a laugh. I groaned and got off the bench. I kneeled down and I was at eye level. "What do I do now, boss?" I sighed, defeated.

_Just concentrate. Think of your heart, beating, strong, unbeatable. Think hard._

I did as he asked and closed my eyes. My breath slowed to an even pace and I found myself changing, in to something new. I felt fur covering my skin, suddenly getting hot. I felt a bead of sweat roll down my face. A growl erupted from my changing lungs and then merged in to a hiss. I felt no change anymore. My eyes snapped open and I saw differently. I was shorter, and I had paws. I flexed my 'hands' and saw that sharp claws came out.

A yowl escaped my mouth and Lucas's tail wedged between my jaws.

_Stop that! Someone almost heard you! _

I then found not the sand we'd just been on, but grass, and the smell of the forest. My head rose and found myself looking at Lucas's shoulder.

_I__'__m shorter than you?! What am I?! A possum? _Lucas chuckled.

_No, you__'__re definitely not a possum. You__'__re a lynx. Your personality is that you like to keep to your self and if threatened, you take charge. You__'__re fierce. _He winked.

_So what now? Am I telling anyone? Please don__'__t tell me I have to tell my mom! _I paced frantically in front of Lucas who was sitting patiently.

_You can__'__t tell anybody, obviously. But first, before you go home, I__'__d like you to meet my family._


	3. Underground Family

_**(A/N sorry guys, this one's **__**really long. **_**On the computer, it's eight pages. Yes, I'm obsessed…)**

CHAPTER 3 Underground Family

We padded over to a large oak tree in the clearing and Lucas growled twice. 

_Growl. The tree needs to know your ID. _Lucas nudged me. I stared at him, confused then I growled the best I could, resulting in a weak meow. Lucas chuckled and yelped at the tree. 

_Okay, one more time. _Lucas kept back a laugh. I glowered at him then gave the biggest growl I could make to the tree. 

_Nice. _Lucas licked the side of my face. 

_EWWW! Gross! Don__'__t do that! _I licked my paw and used it to wash my face of his spit. Lucas made his growl and a door opened in the tree. I jumped at the creaking of the door.

_Oops, better get Simon on that. _Lucas muttered in his thoughts. He trotted in to the hole and hid tail disappeared down some stairs. 

_Come on. They__'__re waiting. _Lucas said in a musical voice. I bounded towards the tree when suddenly, WHAM! 

***

_Marie! Marie! Can you hear me? _Lucas's voice filled my mind. I shook my head and struggled to get to my feet. Paws restrained me and I hissed in annoyance. 

_Oh good, you__'__re okay! Oh my god you scared me! I thought you__'__d gone__…_

Lucas got off of me and I felt the heat off his pelt beside me. I heard a whimper then I opened my eyes and there he was, in all his animal perfection. 

_Hey. What happened? I was following you, then I think the door closed on me. _I stretched my legs and propped myself up in to a sitting position. Lucas did the same. 

_You shouldn__'__t do that to the tree. It only lets animals in by their voice-print. You__'__ve got to growl at the tree for permission to enter. That__'__s why I asked you to growl for ID. _Lucas informed me. I noticed a movement behind Lucas and I peered around him. My eyes bulged at the size of the family. They all sat waiting patiently, then they came over and made a circle around us. 

Suddenly, Lucas went back to his human form.

"Mom, Dad," Lucas turned to a pair of withered lions. I guessed those were his parents. "this is Marie. I am no longer alone." Lucas said formally. The lioness dipped her head and began her way towards me. 

_Hello. _Her voice was musical and cheerful. _My name is Catherine. I__'__m Lucas__'__s mother, as you may now know. My family is taking precautions to save me if you__'__re dangerous, which I know you__'__re not. Lucas picked a wonderful mate. I__'__m so glad to have you in the family secrets. _She smiled. Catherine turned and flicked her tail towards the male. He got up, and hesitated. I could tell Catherine flashed bared teeth because he jumped away from his mate and trotted swiftly up to where I stood.

_Hello. I__'__m Oliver. Nice to meet Lucas__'__s new mate. _His voice was flat and emotionless. He seemed uninterested. 

I heard a hiss from behind me and Oliver's head snapped up. 

_Be nice, you__'__re talking to Lucas__'__s mate for life! _A voice growled. I turned around to find a sleek, black cougar, positioned to pounce. 

"Calm down, Sam! Dad's just preoccupied." Lucas snapped. 

_Sorry brother dearest. _Sam chuckled sarcastically. 

"Whatever." Lucas rolled his eyes, then walked over to me and knelt down. 

It took a few tries to get me in his arms enough to get me down in to the tree, when a hand screen came out of the ground. I waited until Lucas had put in his handprint, then stuck my hand in to the scanner. It was hot from the hands before me, but the scan was over quickly. 

Lucas made his way down the flight of hidden stairs, my head against his chest. I could hear the rhythm of his heartbeat; it soothed me a little. He set me down carefully inside a dirt tunnel, a foot off the ground and stepped over me, ducking. His face came close to mine and he seemed to have noticed when I caught my breath as my heart rate sped. He stopped, and smiled at me. His sweet breath surrounded my face and he leaned closer. It felt like he was closer, though he was around the same spot where his face was originally. I waited and closed my eyes, waiting for this huge moment in my life…

"You okay? I thought I heard your breath catch. Marie?" I felt his forehead against mine and the blood rushed to my cheeks and I gripped the root behind me. He was fully aware that I had stopped breathing, stepped back over me and tugged me out of the hole. Lucas's grip on my back and legs were held tight, my arms would not respond. I told them: 

_LEGGO! WHY AREN__'__T YOU LETTING GO YOU STUPID ARMS?! _I heard him grunt with the effort, then finally, my hands released the root. 

I felt the air rush by me, but not in the direction I imagined. We fell to the ground with a thud and I rolled over Lucas's face once he let his arms go limp. 

I came to an abrupt stop. My nose had found the ground. I rolled on to my back and looked up. Standing above me was a sibling of Lucas's who I didn't know.

"Cassie." Lucas addressed her rudely. I could hear the mocking in his tone.

"Lucas." she shot back. "Mom and Dad told you to go back to your room to make sure she's okay."

"I was, though just as I was taking her though the tunnel, I heard her breath stop. Do you think I should keep her in that four and a half meter tunnel while she stops breathing?!" he snapped. They began their fight and spat back at each other until Lucas stopped.

"…and I don't think you deserve to have her know any more than she does!" Cassie finished. I heard a growl and suddenly Cassie phased in to a cobra and shot towards where Lucas stood. I got up and turned towards the attack. Cassie had herself wrapped tightly around Lucas's body, while Lucas had his jaws around her head. 

"Stop! I don't want any of you guys getting hurt!" I screeched. They didn't stop. I guess they couldn't hear me. I sucked in more air to shout again, when:

_Enough! _a voice blasted in my head. I covered my ears, though that wouldn't do me much good anyways. The fighting stopped and Lucas's jaws released the much bitten head of a cobra. Slowly, Cassie unravelled from his body and Lucas spat on the floor, then covered it with dirt. I guessed Cassie shot venom in to his mouth. 

_Never. In all my years have I seen that much of violence in this house. I can__'__t believe you two! I am very disappointed in you. _I whipped around to see Oliver standing in his phased form, the lion. I hadn't heard the authority in his voice before. (Not that I'd known him for long.)

_Now go to your rooms. Lucas, take Marie to your room. Marie, I hope that didn__'__t scare you too much. _Oliver had come closer and nudged my hand. I patted his head.

"It's okay. I don't mind. It's just that I haven't ever seen brother-sister fights like _that _before." I chuckled. Lucas yipped, laughing. I turned around and followed Lucas down the tunnel. 

***

"So, this is your room, huh?" I stepped out of the tunnel after Lucas climbed out. The room was quite large, filled with posters of bands, and a king size bed. The sheets were bundled up on the wall of stone, which surprised me. 

"Why are your sheets rolled up like a burrito?" I walked over to the bed and began unravelling the green sheets. 

"I dunno. Don't have time? I have to get up at six every morning to wash the dishes before breakfast time." he came up behind me in his human form and I felt him shrug. "So, are you okay? I thought I'd lost ya there for a while. Scared the heck out of me."

"Yeah, I'm fine." I lied. My heart raced. My brain finally reacted to the fact that we were in his room alone. He put his hands on my shoulders and spun me around. My heart felt like it was not a part of me anymore. 

"Marie, tell the truth." he came closer. I blinked stupidly and it seemed he spoke in a different language. His brown eyes bored in to mine looking for a sign of life… and chance of breathing again. I let my breath go, and I took Lucas's hand.

"Really, I'm fine. I don't think I need CPR though. That, I could do without." I started to babble again, oh no! " Though I don't believe Cassie is okay, seeing as you all but chewed her head off. You should apologize. It seems like the right thing to do. By the way, did you ever think about why there are 'toes' in potatoes? Or in _to_matoes? It seems odd because they aren't even toes! They're a vegetable and a fruit. Also, did you find out how a tomato is a fruit? I mean, I _looks _like a vegetable, yet it produces seeds which makes it a fruit."

I began to run out of steam, so I just flopped back on to the foot of Lucas's bed. BIG MISTAKE. Lucas sat down beside me and rubbed my arm while I panted heavily. He sighed and leaned back on to the bed, his neck just above my head. He leaned over and kissed my forehead. My breathing stuttered and he chuckled. I glared up at him and he wasn't looking at me. He stared up at the ceiling. I followed his gaze and saw a small stain glass window in a tube upwards looking outside. The picture was of black and yellow spots, cheetah spots. Then suddenly, a brown-ish pattern appeared beside it, now merging in to the side a bit. I sat up and looked at Lucas, surprised. 

"It's a thing our glasses do." He explained, without really looking at me. "Don't worry, it's a mate thing. Seeing as I like you so much, and you came in to my room, the glass senses your presence and your pelt pattern comes out on to the glass, fusing with mine."

"Oh." was my brilliant response. 

"Um Marie?" Lucas sat up, biting his lip. "Are you scared of my family? I mean, not to put you under pressure or anything."

"Yeah, I like your family. They're pretty interesting. I mean, with the whole shape-shifting thing. And the fights are kinda weird, but the experience is just new to me, y'know?" I gave him a half-smile. He shrugged and took my hand again. 

"Would you feel up to a race?" He lifted his eyebrow, challenging. 

"You know you'll win." I scolded. "You're a cheetah. You know, the fastest land mammal?" I reminded him. 

"You get a five minute head start…?" he sang innocently. I huffed and held out my hand. 

"Deal." He grinned widely and shook my hand. He didn't let go of my hand, yet twisted his to twine my fingers with his. 

He leaned in slowly, trying not to surprise me. I knew instantly what he was getting to so I inclined my head in his direction. 

Our lips met in the middle and he moved closer to me. I kissed him back passionately and he responded. His lips were crushing against mine now. He took his free hand and took the back of my head and held it on his, so I couldn't get out. I hit him, now running out of air. And he mistook it for more passion. He took his hand off my head and put it on my waist, pulling me on top of him, lying down on the bed. 

Again, sitting on the bed was a big mistake. I found him trying to pry my lips open, and I forced them to stay closed. I took the hand he held, and pushed him away. His lips did not leave me, they just moved to my neck. 

I gasped in air and panted heavily. Suddenly, he froze. Lucas shoved me off him, on to the bed and got up. He fell to his knees and quickly phased in to his cheetah form. The tunnel was filled with the sound of running thumps. Lucas growled and got in to a defensive position. 

_Boo! _A joking voice rang in my head. 

_Leave us alone! _Lucas snarled. 

_Just checking on you love-cats. _As the voice said that, a lioness jumped out of the tunnel. _Mom told me to make sure you were getting Marie home soon. It__'__s five. _

_Seriously, Kachiri? I was gonna race her home. Just before you came._ Lucas said in disgust. 

_Whatever. Get her home. Mom__'__s expecting you to be back by at least five-thirty. Bye. _Kachiri rolled her eyes and jumped back into the tunnel. 

_Come on Marie. Let__'__s go back to your house. _Lucas padded towards a new tunnel which probably led outside. 

***

We raced back to my house, Lucas had kept his promise of letting me have a head start, yet he only counted 50 seconds. Soon, he'd caught up to me and bolted ahead for a good 20 minute walk on human feet and sat down waiting for me. He was licking his paws, cleaning himself casually and got up when I turned the corner. 

_Hey slowpoke. _He teased. _What took you so long? _he smirked.

_That__'__s not nice, Racing Spots. _I added with the movie title Racing Stripes in my head. _Are we going to phase back so we can walk up to the house without suspicion? Or are we going to give my mother a heart-attack and get taken to an Animal Control Centre? _I nudged him jokingly while we walked a little ways down the trail. He barked a laugh and stopped. He got up on his hind legs and phased back into his human form, still shaking with laughter. 

_Come on, it wasn__'__t that funny. _My front legs stretched out in front of me and I flexed my claws. 

"Sorry, it's just that I thought of the scene where we get chased down by humans and me cooped up in a kitty cage." he snorted. I rolled my eyes. I got up- well tried to - get up on my hind legs and fell over backwards. Lucas laughed hysterically and I bared my teeth at him. 

"Nice kitty!" he teased, which, in fact, made him laugh harder. I pounced on him playfully and stuck my paws on his face. 

"FRMURFM!!!" Lucas mumbled. 

_What__'__s that? _I smirked. I let go of his face and he was grinning. He picked me up from under my arms, and I fell limp. I growled in frustration. He chuckled and put me down while getting up at the same time. I phased back and got up on my feet. I crossed my arms and cocked my head impatiently. He took notice of my impatience and slowed his laugh to a chuckle. Lucas grabbed my hand and I sighed. 

"Okay, sorry. I got a little carried away." Lucas confessed. 

"PSSSH! Yeah you did." I spat. Lucas wiped his forehead dramatically. 

"Ew!" he mocked. I did the mature thing and stuck my tongue out at him. 

"Let's go back to my house _before_ the Animal Control does come." I smirked. 

"Race ya!" Lucas yelled, already halfway to the door. I rolled my eyes once more and followed after him. 

"Marie-Katherine-Jennifer-Anne, you are much more of a slowpoke than me." Lucas was leaning on the doorframe, looking like a god. I slowed to a walking pace and tried to keep myself composed. 

"I thought you only called me by a nickname, cuz my actual name is too long." I stopped and leaned next to Lucas on the house. 

"Well, I find your name intricate, so I decided to try out saying your full name in one sentence. I also find your presence intoxicating. Seeing as you're my soul mate and vice versa. I hope I'll see you tomorrow, at school. Don't get sick. For me." the last part was probably meant to be sarcastic, but Lucas started to lean in. A goodnight kiss. A smile began to play on my lips and soon, I leaned in his direction, our lips meet in the middle. He kissed me lightly, then it got a little more intense, and urgent. He took my shoulders and felt his way down to my elbows, pulling them around his neck. He yanked me closer, wrapping his arms around my waist. I couldn't resist, so I began to let him take control. I heard a camera snap. Lucas must have felt me tense up, so he pulled away. 

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" he asked, alarmed.

"My mom…""


	4. Telling Mom

CHAPTER 4 Telling Mom

"Oh god, no! She always does this whenever I get a guy to drop me off at home." I had closed my eyes and I rubbed my temples. Then I heard my mom's rushed steps down the front stairs and a slam on the door.

"owww…" she moaned. Lucas grabbed my shoulders and shifted me to the other side of the doorway. He opened the door for my mom only to find her lifting herself off the ground.

"Sorry. I hope I didn't scare you…or dent the door." she patted the door. And silently apologized.

'_Wow. Did you hear that? She apologized. To the __door._ 'I asked in my mind. I knew he could hear me, but he decided to ignore me and help my mom up.

"No don't worry, we're not scared." Lucas chuckled charmingly. My mom seemed charmed.

""Ohohoho!" she blushed. ""And who are you?"

"Well I'm-"

"Why don't you come in? I have some cookies in the oven!" she squealed. _Don__'__t eat them. You never know what she put in there. _I warned Lucas. He looked at me and nodded sharply, not trying to let my mom know something was different.

We entered my house and my mom led us to the white living room. I sat down on the couch and patted the seat beside me. We sat in silence, but spoke between our minds.

'_So, what__'__s so bad about your mom__'__s cookies?__'_

'_One time I found a piece of cloth from my sock I had lost the week before.__'_

'_Gross.__'_

'_Anything else you need to know? __'_

'_Wow. Your living room is nice. It__'__s, well, __white.__'_

'_Yup, that__'__s my mom. This is the only room in the house that__'__s not crowded with her junk. __'_

Just as I said 'junk' my mom steadied herself into the room, carrying her batch of…cookies. She set them down and nudged the plate towards us.

"No thank you. I'm eating supper soon. And speaking of supper, I should really be getting back home." He began to get up from the couch, when thanks to my mom, she pushed him back down.

"So what's your name again?" she asked politely.

"Lucas, ma'am." he said, addressing her.

"Oh, Lucas. That's a nice name." she said while taking a cookie. I noticed out of her back pocket sticking out was a yellow note pad and a pen. Lucas didn't seem to notice that.

_Okay that__'__s just __nasty.__ Can I go now? I need to get home, __my __mom__'__s getting impatient. The whole family__'__s waiting. _His hand began to tap on the side of the arm of the couch.

"Uh, Mom? I think Lucas needs to get home for supper." I quickly said.

"But I haven't asked my questions yet!" she whined.

"Thanks for letting me see your beautiful home." he nodded his head appreciatively. Then turned towards me and winked.

_See you tomorrow?_

_Yup. I__'__ll be waiting in homeroom. _I winked back. He smiled and with that, he left.

"So," my mom started.

"No way Mom. No way." I interrupted her. I got up and started my way up to my room. She got up before me and took my shoulders, just as Lucas had. I didn't feel the sparks the same way.

"Please?" she whispered. Then she added a puppy dog face. The one that was always used to get to me. I constantly looked away to stop my saying yes. But this time it was different. I just stared. I didn't feel guilty anymore.

"No." I stated, then walked around her.

---

The next morning I woke up to the smell of pancakes. Uh oh. She was trying again. I groaned and I heard my mom trotting up the stairs.

"Oh come on! Why won't you tell me something? I only have a few questions!" she pleaded. I just shook my head and walked out of my room.

"NO DON'T!! THERE'S-" but it was too late. I felt something squishy under the soles of my feet. I blinked, then looked down. The pancakes. With syrup. "Pancakes in the doorway…" she finished.

I had to take a shower, just to take the syrup off of my feet which had to be rushed, otherwise I would have been extremely late. I rushed the towelling process and tore a brush through my hair.

"Bye Mom, love you!" I shouted as I ran out the door.

(Sorry guys, this one is soo short. I just needed to make this next one have some suspense.)


	5. The Fog Hides Enemies

CHAPTER 5 The Fog Hides Enemies

I didn't see him as I ran into his body. I smashed into the figure at the end of the driveway. He grunted at the force, but didn't fall over as I expected. He stood his ground, as _I _ricocheted back on the pavement. My hands sting, and I close my eyes, fighting tears.

"Oh, sorry, was I in your way?" the boy asked sincerely. I opened my eyes, to find Lucas holding his hand out, to help me up. I lifted my stinging hand. Looking at it, I saw scrapes and blood. I moaned.

"Now I'm really gonna be late!" I groaned while getting up. He put his arm around my waist and helped me back to the house. Wait a minute, my waist? MY WAIST!

"Hey Ms. S!" Lucas called.

My mom ran down the stairs at the sound of his voice. A notepad in hand, she rushed my side, checking my hands. She jotted down some notes and jogged into the kitchen. Probably getting some bandages. Lucas turned to face me and held my shoulders to make me look at him. He took my scraped hands and turned them over, revealing my cuts. He kissed all the cuts and then kissed my lips gently. He pulled away before we got too 'into it'. I giggled and my mom came back with rubbing alcohol and gauze.

* * *

My hands wrapped in gauze and a few screams, we eventually got out the door. My mom drove us to school and went home. She found it would take too long for us to get there by foot, and we were late enough already.

I rushed over to my locker and Lucas followed, opening the locker beside mine. I cocked my head, asking how that happened.

"Later." he said quietly. I nodded and we ran off to homeroom.

"Mr. Brandon, Ms. S, glad you could join us.." our homeroom teacher Mrs. Mann said sarcastically. I put my hands up in surrender, and I remembered that I had bandages around my hands, and just before I could put them down, Mrs. Mann gasped.

"Oh, dear child! Are you okay? Is this the reason why you were late?" then she whipped her head over to Lucas. "But, what's your excuse?"

"I was the one she ran into, and she fell back on the pavement." he explained, hands stuffed in his front pockets.

"Are your hands damaged too?" she asked, unimpressed. He shook his head and walked over to our desk. "I'll give you the excuse today, but no more injuries. You've had ten, including this one, this whole year. And it's only _January!!"_

We sat down and Mrs. Mann kept going with her lesson.

Lucas's cell phone buzzed and he immediately took it out and looked at the screen. His jaw clenched and he looked over at me.

_Marie, we've gotta leave. Now. The family enemy is coming, as says Jenna, my sister that sees the future. She's the only one in the whole 25 of our family that has a power., well, besides me, of course. Well anyways, we have to leave now. My dad is expecting us._

_What are you talking about? You said yourself that Jenna was the only one, remember? And why? We're not allowed to leave during class except if it's an…emergency…Oh. Let's go. You also owe me an explanation._

"Uh, excuse me, Mrs. Mann?" Lucas asked politely.

"What now, Mr. Brandon?" she replied impatiently.

"Marie and I need to be excused from class. Important family matters are needed to be attended to." he began picking up his things.

_Here's your explanation._

He looked Mrs. Mann in the eyes, I suppose, and concentrated very hard.

"You may go." she answered, monotonously. He nodded and started picking up my things.

_Come on, let's _go.

I bent down to pick up my binder, but it was already in Lucas's one hand hold. His other hand was free and Lucas didn't seem to mind that his other arm carried about forty pounds worth of school supplies. He grabbed my hand and hauled me out of the class. I could tell he stopped concentrating, because the vibrations ceased. Mrs. Mann said her response.

"No, you may not. You've already been gone long enough and you've got injuries. Too many, I think." she kept going on with her lecture until a student coughed. Mrs. Mann abruptly stopped her lecture for us, and asked;

"What happened? Oh well. Back to English Literature." and continued her academic lesson from where she left off.

Lucas yanked my hand and brought me back to mine and 'his' locker.

"what was that?" I asked, concerned.

"A little mind control." he shrugged.

"Tell me again why your locker is next to mine." I reminded him.

"Kid who was here before moved away." he said while stuffing and taking things out of his locker. I put back my books and grabbed my jacket off the hook.

_So, what are we doing again? And what was about a family enemy? _I asked when we jumped out of my window. I phased once my feet touched the ground, and together, Lucas and I raced off to the edge of the forest.

_Well, our enemy's name is almost a swear in our house, but her name's Chelsea. She's also a shape shifter, so she's just as dangerous. We haven't seen her for at least four years. She was like, forty the last time! _he chuckled. I giggled in my thoughts along with him. It sounded right. **(Sorry, Soprano and Bass people, but it just came to me subconsciously.) **My Soprano giggles and his Bass chuckles.

_There you guys are! We've been waiting forever! _a new voice boomed in our thoughts, as we entered the field.

_Shut up, Sam. We got here as fast as our _fastest cats in the world _paws could carry us. _Lucas retorted rudely.

_Lucas! Be nice. _Catherine scolded. _And Samuel, you mind your own business. _

I giggled again, and padded over to where an assortment of animals sat, stood and hopped.

_She's coming. Soon, so you boys better stop your bickering. We don't need anymore of your silliness. _Oliver stepped up from behind the group I was standing with.

_GUYS!! Jenna says they're coming in three hours!! Get your butts, beaks and tails moving! _a sheep ran out from the tree. From the list Lucas gave me, I suspected her name was Leeann.

_Alright, Sam, you take that half, Lucas and Marie, you two take that half. _Oliver snapped. _I don't want you two on the same team. _

For two hours straight, we play fought and practiced our fighting. Though Lucas had promised it wouldn't come to a fight.

We worked and fought in the bushes, because that day, there were a few people on the beach. We phased to go into the water if we got too hot. Lucas and I shifted back and I raced him over to the beach. I beat him and sprayed him.

"Hah! I beat you! The one time I'm tired, I BEAT YOU!!" I laughed. Lucas was nowhere to be seen. Then suddenly, I got lifted up out of the water.

"Hey!! Put me down!!" I exclaimed, squirming as he lifted me until I was above his head.

"No way! This is too fun!" Lucas spun me around and laughed with me. It was not until Lucas stopped and had me in his arms bridal-style that I noticed he wasn't looking down at me. I noticed a peculiar mist on the water. Before I could count to three, Lucas ran out of the water and up on the shore beside his unusually large family. He put me down and phased quickly and growled.

_Phase Marie. Now!_ Lucas commanded. Everything happened so fast, Lucas and I ran to lie down near the middle of the group while Sam and Cassie were at the spear point of our formation. The mist turned into thick fog and everyone laid down on the ground silently.

I phased quickly while lying down, and suddenly, my ears pricked up to the quiet sound of flapping wings. I glanced up and saw small movement. An eagle. It soared around the area and spiralled its way down. It was very close to the ground where we hid. My breath caught, when the eagle quickly descended, but then swooped away into the fog. It screeched once and then we heard the flapping fade. I got up slightly to look at Lucas, puzzled. He gave me such a glare, I sat back down. I listened again, trying to pick up anymore flapping, but came up with nothing. Except a certain rowing…? I heard a faint creak of wooden oars and whispering. I picked up a few of the whispers, then suddenly, the scent hit me like a ton of bricks. It was a foul, musty smell with a bit of forest. I guessed these visitors were travelling for quite a while. The rowing and creaking got clearer and louder.

(Like it? I hope so. Just press that little green button and review, review, review! …please? Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease??)


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